On Friday 28 March, the New IMANI Programme was foremost on the agenda of the 12th Meeting of the Committee of Social Partners (CSP). The CSP meets on a monthly basis and is chaired by Prime Minister Dr Kieth Mitchell.
Minister of Youth Empowerment and Sports, Hon. Emmalin Pierre, and a team from her Ministry addressed some major concerns previously raised by the CSP and provided an overview of the programme and outlined the monitoring and evaluation process that is being used to assess the trainees.
Successes of the programme include several trainees finding permanent employment. Many more have testified to the positive change that the mandatory personal development training has made in their lives.
The Minister highlighted challenges of termination due to breaches. Close to 300 trainees (with 10 or more absences over a given time period) have been terminated due to absenteeism. As the programme is not a job replacement programme,the ministry immediately withdrew IMANI trainees from an employer after he terminated his paid employees on receipt of the IMANI trainees.
Other items on the agenda were:
- The finalisation of the Social Compact and Action Plan, which should be signed shortly and tabled in Parliament;
- A Joint Monitoring Framework for the Home Grown Programme;
- The Carriacou Marina Project, and
- The resumption CSP’s public education series.
It was decided that the public education series will resume at the end of April 2014, with a discussion on Constitution Reform which will be followed immediately by a discussion on the Social Compact. The discussion on the Social Compact will highlight the elements and importance of the Social Compact to all partners involved and the general population on a whole.
The hotline for complaints and suggestions for the New IMANI Programme is 418-1875.
The Social Compact may be viewed online.
Source: Ministry Of Finance & Energy
